Selangor considers declaring climate emergency

 

The Selangor government is looking into the possibility of declaring a climate emergency in the state to address climate change and flash floods, said Menteri Besar Amirudin Shari.

“We will consider (declaring a) climate emergency. It is one of our proposals.

“But we cannot simply announce without proper research and data by the experts,” he said.

Amirudin was speaking to the media during an event in Petaling Jaya today.

He revealed that the state government engaged experts to prepare a report three years ago and their proposals will be carried out once the report is ready.

“We appointed the Japan International Cooperation Agency, together with UPM (Universiti Putra Malaysia), and several agencies to conduct a study in 2019.

Selangor Menteri Besar Amirudin Shari

“We already received a preliminary report and the report will be completed by the end of this year or early next year,” he said.

He added that the state government has plans for the coastal areas which may be hit hard in the future due to rising sea levels.

Amirudin was responding to a suggestion by DAP's Klang MP Charles Santiago, who asked the state government to declare a climate emergency so more can be done for Klang and the coastal areas of Selangor.

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While the Selangor government is open to declaring a climate emergency, Putrajaya feels such a move is not needed at the moment as the federal government looks at other measures to handle the floods.

Last month, Environment and Water Minister Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man said the government is keeping a close eye on mitigation efforts to ensure there is no drastic increase in temperatures.

At present, carbon emissions in Malaysia are around 316.83 metric tonnes, of which 245.79 metric tonnes are offset.

Tuan Ibrahim said one of the government’s goals now is to capture the remaining excess carbon emissions - via efforts such as protecting forests, planting trees, and protecting coral reefs. - Mkini